[House Report 108-655]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



108th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     108-655

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  HARPERS FERRY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK BOUNDARY REVISION ACT OF 2004

                                _______
                                

 September 7, 2004.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Pombo, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1576]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill (S. 
1576) to revise the boundary of Harpers Ferry National 
Historical Park, and for other purposes, having considered the 
same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend 
that the bill do pass.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of S. 1576 is to revise the boundary of Harpers 
Ferry National Historical Park and for other purposes.

                  Background and Need For Legislation

    Located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah 
Rivers in West Virginia, Harpers Ferry is the site of a former 
federal armory that was captured by abolitionist John Brown and 
his followers in 1859. The site was elevated to national park 
status in 1944 by act of Congress.
    In 2001, at the direction of Congress, the National Park 
Service undertook outreach efforts and public meetings to 
explain the options for expanding the boundary of the 
Historical Park. The National Park Service transmitted the 
results of the outreach efforts to Congress in a report titled 
``Report to the Senate Appropriations Committee of the United 
States Congress on the Public Outreach Program at Harpers Ferry 
National Historical Park, in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, to 
Explain the Options to Expand the Park's Boundaries and 
Determine if there is a Public Consensus for Expansion'' 
(September 2002). The report concluded that there exists an 
overwhelming public consensus (94%) for expansion of the Park.
    S. 1576 would incorporate into the boundary of the Park and 
provide protection for nine parcels of land currently 
threatened by development. Such parcels include sites related 
to the historical events that took place in Harpers Ferry, 
including the following: properties on School House Ridge, 
which was the position of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson 
during the battle for Harpers Ferry in 1862; the Werner tract, 
which protects the southern viewshed of the Park; a portion of 
the Appalachian National Scenic Trail that contains Civil War 
campgrounds; and Potoma Wayside that protects part of the view 
Thomas Jefferson described in his Journals on the State of 
Virginia.

                            Committee Action

    Senator Robert Byrd introduced S. 1576 on September 3, 
2003. The Senate passed the bill on May 19, 2004, by unanimous 
consent. It was referred to the House Committee on Resources 
and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on National Parks, 
Recreation and Public Lands. On June 15, 2004, the Subcommittee 
conducted a hearing on the bill. On July 8, 2004, the 
Subcommittee met to mark up the bill. No amendments were 
offered and the bill was forwarded to the Full Resources 
Committee by unanimous consent. On July 14, 2004, the Full 
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. No amendments 
were offered and the bill was ordered favorably reported to the 
House of Representatives by unanimous consent.

            Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations 
are reflected in the body of this report.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Article I, section 8 and Article IV, section 3 of the 
Constitution of the United States grant Congress the authority 
to enact this bill.

                    Compliance With House Rule XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or 
objective of this bill is to revise the boundary of Harpers 
Ferry National Historical Park.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

S. 1576--Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act 
        of 2003

    S. 1576 would expand the boundary of the Harpers Ferry 
National Historical Park in West Virginia by about 1,240 acres. 
The act would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to 
acquire the added acreage by purchase, donation, or exchange, 
except that lands that are already owned by the federal 
government would be acquired by transfer. Finally, the act 
would authorize the appropriation of whatever amounts are 
necessary for these purposes.
    Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO 
estimates that implementing S. 1576 would cost the federal 
government about $5 million over the next year or two. Of this 
amount, we estimate that $4 million would be used to purchase 
about 190 acres of private property, and $1 million would be 
used to develop that land. The remaining acreage that would be 
added to the park is either already owned by the federal 
government or would be donated by the nonprofit Civil War 
Preservation Trust. CBO estimates that additional costs to 
operate and maintain those additional lands would be less than 
$200,000 a year. This estimate is based on information provided 
by the NPS.
    S. 1576 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would have no significant impact on the budgets of state, 
local, or tribal governments.
    On March 25, 2004, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 
1576 as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources on March 9, 2004. The two versions of the 
legislation are identical, as are the estimated costs.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Compliance With Public Law 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                Preemption of State, Local or Tribal Law

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, existing law in which no change 
is proposed is shown in roman):

                          ACT OF JUNE 30, 1944


 AN ACT To provide for the establishment of the Harpers Ferry National 
                               Monument.

  Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, [That, in 
order to carry out the purposes of this Act, the Secretary of 
the Interior is authorized to acquire lands or interests in 
lands, by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated 
funds, or exchange, within the boundaries as generally depicted 
on the drawing entitled ``Boundary Map, Harpers Ferry National 
Historical Park'', numbered 384-80,021A and dated April 1979, 
which shall be on file and available for public inspection in 
the offices of the National Park Service, Department of the 
Interior: Provided, That after advising the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on 
Natural Resources of the House of Representatives, in writing, 
the Secretary may make minor revisions in the boundary, when 
necessary, by publication of a revised drawing or other 
boundary description in the Federal Register, but the total 
acreage shall not exceed two thousand five hundred and five 
acres: Provided further, That nothing herein shall be deemed to 
authorize the acquisition, without consent of the owner, of a 
fee simple interest in lands within the boundaries in which a 
less than fee interest has previously been acquired by the 
Secretary of the Interior. The Secretary is authorized to 
acquire, by donation only, approximately twenty-seven acres of 
land or interests therein which are outside the boundary of the 
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and generally depicted 
on a map entitled ``Proposed Bradley and Ruth Nash Addition--
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park,'' dated April 1, 1989 
and numbered 385-80056. Such map shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the offices of the National Park 
Service, Department of the Interior, Washington, District of 
Columbia. When acquired, such lands or interests therein shall 
become a part of the park, subject to the laws and regulations 
applicable thereto. Any Federal land within the area designated 
by the Secretary of the Interior as necessary for monument 
purposes shall be transferred to the administration of the 
Department of the Interior and when so transferred shall become 
a part of the monument: Provided, That the Federal department 
or agency having administration over such land shall agree in 
advance to such transfer.]

SECTION 1. HARPERS FERRY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK.

  (a) In General.--To carry out the purposes of this Act, the 
Secretary of the Interior (referred to in this Act as the 
``Secretary'') is authorized to acquire, by purchase from a 
willing seller with donated or appropriated funds, by donation, 
or by exchange, land or an interest in land within the 
boundaries as generally depicted on the map entitled ``Boundary 
Map, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park'', numbered 385-
80,021A, and dated April 1979.
  (b) Bradley and Ruth Nash Addition.--The Secretary is 
authorized to acquire, by donation only, approximately 27 acres 
of land or interests in land that are outside the boundary of 
the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and generally 
depicted on the map entitled ``Proposed Bradley and Ruth Nash 
Addition--Harpers Ferry National Historical Park'', numbered 
385-80056, and dated April 1, 1989.
  (c) Boundary Expansion.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary is authorized to 
        acquire, by purchase from a willing seller with donated 
        or appropriated funds, by donation, or by exchange, 
        land or an interest in land within the area depicted as 
        ``Private Lands'' on the map entitled ``Harpers Ferry 
        National Historical Park Proposed Boundary Expansion,'' 
        numbered 385/80,126, and dated July 14, 2003.
          (2) Administration.--The Secretary shall--
                  (A) transfer to the National Park Service for 
                inclusion in the Harpers Ferry National 
                Historical Park (referred to in this Act as the 
                ``Park'') the land depicted on the map referred 
                to in paragraph (1) as ``U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
                Service Lands'' and revise the boundary of the 
                Park accordingly; and
                  (B) revise the boundary of the Park to 
                include the land depicted on the map referred 
                to in paragraph (1) as ``Appalachian NST'' and 
                exclude that land from the boundary of the 
                Appalachian National Scenic Trail.
  (d) Maximum Number of Acres.--The number of acres of the Park 
shall not exceed 3,745.
  (e) Maps.--The maps referred to in this section shall be on 
file and available for public inspection in the appropriate 
offices of the National Park Service.
  (f) Acquired Land.--Land or an interest in land acquired 
under this section shall become a part of the Park, subject to 
the laws (including regulations) applicable to the Park.
  (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to 
be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this 
section.
  Sec. 2. The property acquired under the provisions of section 
1 of this Act shall constitute the Harpers Ferry National 
Monument and shall be a public national memorial commemorating 
historical events at or near Harpers Ferry. The Director of the 
National Park Service under the direction of the Secretary [of 
the Interior], shall have the supervision, management, and 
control of such national monument, and shall maintain and 
preserve it for the benefit and enjoyment of the people of the 
United States, subject to the provisions of the Act of August 
25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535), entitled ``An Act to establish a 
National Park Service, and for other purposes'', as amended.
  Sec. 3. The Secretary [of the Interior] is authorized to--
  (1) * * *

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